Washington Capitals vs Flyers: Battle before Big Game

The Washington Capitals carry on the tradition of setting the tone for the NFL’s Super Bowl, can they do so with a win over rival Philadelphia Flyers?

After collecting their only two regulation losses on the year the Washington Capitals look to get back to the top of the east division by taking on the now second place holder the Philadelphia Flyers at home. This marks the first time they meet this season, and will be the first in a two game home set.

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It has been since last Saturday against the Boston Bruins that the Capitals won. In this game it was evident that the team was struggling to play a full game while allowing the Bruins to come back from a three goal lead to tie it and require OT for the Capitals to win. This would carry over the next game with them giving up another three goal lead, only this time it took only regulation to complete the game only it was in the Bruins favor this go around. Matters only got worse as the Capitals then came out cold against the Rangers and would need to come back from being down two goals, but ultimately they would lose in regulation.

So what could be the reasoning for their continued struggles? Could it be an issue with the special teams units? The Washington Capitals have been penalized to the 6th most minutes on the short season with 137 PIM.  The penalty kill has fared okay considering their placement in PIMs for the season, they sit at 79.49% on the PK which sits at 18th in the league while allowing the 12th most goals against at 8 PP goals allowed. On the flipside the Capitals rank 5th in the league with a PP% of 34.62, while being tied at 9 for PP goals for with 9. These both point to something else being at fault for the recent slide in results.

Could it be a byproduct of the possession of the puck? In their first three goal collapse resulting in a win against the Bruins, the Capitals CF% came in at a mere 32.8. This was obvious from the shots against Rask versus Vanecek, finishing at 23 versus 43 respectively. Yet the Capitals came away with the win. In the next three goal collapse, the CF% for the Capitals improved to 43.8 with a difference in shots against being  26 versus 32. Unexpectedly this resulted in an opposite outcome with the Capitals losing. Finally, against the Rangers the numbers again improved with the CF% being 53.6 and in this case with a 33-30 shots against difference but with the Capitals being at the advantage this time around. Again this didn’t help the team to a win.

If the Capitals struggles aren’t being found from a statistical standpoint, then most likely its the cause of something that can not be quantified. Usually this boils down to mistakes at bad points in the game. In the second contest with the Bruins the Capitals either left soft zones while in their own end or were guilty of soft defensive play or effort for all four of the goals allowed other than the empty netter. Against the Rangers the Capitals allowed similar opportunities and lapses for all the goals allowed. In most cases the Capitals could have avoided these instances with a more heavy presence in front of the net or more willing skating legs throughout the course of the game. This could be a result of playing with the eldest roster in the NHL especially against the youngest.

Can the team overcome these lapses and gain their 18th win out of 31 chances on Super Bowl Sunday? Here is how to follow along and see:

Date: February 7, 2021
Time: 12 p.m. EST
Where: Capital One Arena
TV Broadcast: NBC
Radio: Caps Radio 24/7
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